The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1887-12-31
slWAsh PorLAroHEs.
How the Indians Of the Pacific Coast pi,

How the Indians OF tho Pacific Coast Dis
pose of Their Money.
The people in Victoria are apt to
talk about the Siwash very much, Ms
the people OF the plains talk about the
Indians there, saying that they are a
lazy and dirty and vicious lot, poisoned
by the vices and diseases of the whites
and all the rest, but the Victorians
would DO very proud of the Siwnsh
could they but compare them with the
Indians of the interior The Siwash
actually live in houses like white men,
wear the garb of white men and wo-
men. work hard Mt numerous employ
ments. such ms salmon fishing. salmon
canning, smuggling Cinnamon into the
United States, carrying passengers
about In their boats, and doing odd
jobs as we'll as many steady ones.
Many of the Siwash are Christianized
and support very creditable mission
chapeis, and. finally, one of the pref
tiest and most lndylike of the passen-
gers on the train that took me to Van
couver was Siwash maiden.
The most curious thing about the
Siwash is their habit of 'pot-latching"
their money away after 1t has taken a
lifetime of work and self-denial to get
it. or after it has been suddenly or
luckily gotten at the end of long-en-
dured poverty, as happened not long
ago when one poor devil sold a piece
of land for handsome sum. The
''pot-latch," as they call 1t, is II festi-
val celebrated when man of the tribe
has got large sum of money and
wants to throw it all away. Five thou
sand dollars is the usual figure which.
once attained in dollars, fits man for
inviting his friends to ''pot-latch. "
Before doing so he builds alarge house,
plainly, in the form Of shed, stocks it
well with liquor, snowy calico. and
cloths and blankets, with nice and USE
full little knick-knacks like pocket
knives and pipes and ribbons, or what
ever he knows the Siwasf are fond OF.
The day set having arrived. all the
Siwash for miles around come to the
big new house and eat, drink and di-
vide the spoils. When they have gone
and the pot-latch is over, which may
not be until the close of the second
day. the man who gave the feast is al.
most as poor as the day he was born,
He has nothing except his roof and
the clothes on his back. All, but he is
richer than ever in another way. He
is ennobled by his own generosity, and
takes high rank above his fellows.
He is apt to work on just as he did be
fore the pot-latch, but he need not dc
so. He need not do any thing. Hi:
tribe has become proud of him, and
will see that he wants for nothing.
The Tsimsheans of the more north
erly coast, including that of Alaska
and the once fierce Hydahs of the is
lands off the coast, all celebrate thu
pot-latch, and Twas very much sur
prised to find when got to Tacoma, il
Washington Territory, that the Indians
there indulge in the custom. though
many of them, if l mistake not, are
Flatheads. 1t was while l was in Ia
coma, by the way, that q very giftet
and observant little lady of New Eng
land descent, who has had much to d.
with the Chinese, has house servant
and peddlers, told me thatlthe Ian
guage in which the best Conversations
progress can be made with a Chinamal
is the Chinook" or pigeon Indian
with which the traders talk to the In
dians. They understand the Indial
words far better than the English ones
To say the least. these are very quee
condolences. Here we find that tn
Indians nearest to China look lik
Chinese, use the same boats tn
Chinese use. and talk n language whicl
the Chinaman family understands. :
NJ y Sun.